Andong and Hahoe Village
Andong, in the hills of Gyeongbuk, is Korea’s capital of Confucian tradition: old clan villages, scholars’ academies and a mask dance that has been performed here for centuries. At its heart is Hahoe, a village of tiled and thatched houses in a bend of the river, still lived in and listed by UNESCO. It is quieter and more real than the hanok villages of the big cities.
![Andong Hahoe Village [UNESCO World Heritage]](https://tong.visitkorea.or.kr/cms/resource/62/4059762_image2_1.jpg)
![Byeongsanseowon Confucian Academy [UNESCO World Heritage]](https://tong.visitkorea.or.kr/cms/resource/63/2620863_image2_1.jpg)
Getting there
- From Seoul, the KTX-Eum from Cheongnyangni reaches Andong in about 2 hours; express buses take about 2 hours 50 minutes.
- Hahoe is about 40 minutes from central Andong by city bus or 30 by taxi. Buses are infrequent; check the timetable.
- The Mask Dance Festival runs from late September into early October. See the festival listing.
What to see
| Hahoe Folk Village | The Ryu clan village, lived in for six centuries, with lanes of mud walls, noble houses and thatched cottages. The Hahoe Byeolsingut mask dance is performed at the village theatre on a regular schedule, most generously at weekends and during the festival. Climb Buyongdae cliff across the river for the view of the whole bend. |
|---|---|
| Byeongsan Seowon | A Confucian academy a few kilometres from Hahoe, with a pavilion looking over the river, one of the most beautiful buildings in Korea. Also UNESCO-listed. |
| Hahoe Mask Museum | Masks from Korea and around the world, by the village entrance. |
| Woryeonggyo Bridge | A long wooden footbridge over the lake in town, lit at night. |
What to eat and drink
- Andong jjimdak: chicken braised with glass noodles and vegetables in a sweet soy sauce. The market’s jjimdak alley is where it comes from.
- Heotjesatbap: “fake ritual food”, the rice and dishes of an ancestral rite, served at restaurants near the dam.
- Andong soju: a strong traditional distilled soju with its own museum.
- Mackerel, salted in the old way for the inland journey from the coast.
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